The Forgotten Brothers
by RR-Major-Ed-Pride
Summary: “They’re gone! Edward! Alphonse!
1. Prologue

Prologue 

--

There is little that can describe the love shared between two parents and their children, some do try and describe it or interpret it, but fail miserably. Parents love their children and would do anything for them, even give up their own lives. At least, that is what is assumed, but, love, life, neither of them can be properly predicted or interpreted because human beings are so vastly unpredictable themselves. How does one measure how much a parent or parent's love their children? Is it how much time they spend with them? Or, is it how much they spend on them? Maybe it can be measured simply by how many times they say 'I love you'?

--

Feb. 5

"What should we name our son dear?" A woman with long brown hair asked her husband. A man with long blond hair tied back in a ponytail and a short beard smiled, he gazed down at the small baby and replied,

"How does…William sound, Trisha?"

"Perhaps…" his wife smiled.

"No? All right then…" the man laughed, "How about…Edward?"

"Hmmm," she smiled again, "That's a good name."

"Edward it is then!"

--

One Year Later

"Edward honey, come over and say hello to your little brother."

"Mommy!" a small boy with short blonde hair, who was no more then one year old, hobbled over and tried to clime up onto his mothers' bed. He was much too small and seemed to be getting frustrated. His father, Hoenheim, walked over and picked him up from under the arms.

"Up you go!" he said setting the little boy on the bed so he could see the baby his mother was holding.

"Say hello to your little brother Alphonse."

Edward just laughed and giggled while pointing at the baby, he then crawled closer and tried to poke the baby. He satisfied his curiosity, but much to everybody's surprise, baby Alphonse burst into tears. This startled Edward and he too started to cry, both parents laughed lightly, Hoenheim picked baby Edward up and carried him off into the kitchen so Trisha and the new baby could rest.

"Now Edward," he set the boy down on a chair and knelt down so he was face to face with the one year old, "You know with the new baby, that makes you a big brother now, and it's your job to look after your little brother when we're not here." Edward just reached out and pulled on his fathers' hair.

--

One Month Later

Lighting flashed and thunder crashed loudly, it was close to four o'clock in the morning, Trisha sat up in bed and looked around the room. There was a flash of lighting, which illuminated the room briefly; she then looked down at her sleeping husband before slipping out of bed slowly.

"I'm just going to check on the boys, I'll be right back."

"Hmm…ok." He replied drowsily. Trisha made her way out of the room and down the hall to the two boys' room. She opened the door slowly and peeked her head in, the room was dark and the sound of rain could be heard pounding on the roof, she took a step into the room and made her way over to the two small cribs. Pausing next to them, Trisha gazed down into the cribs, there was a second flash of lighting and a loud crash of thunder, they were empty.

"Edward? Alphonse?" Trisha started moving the blankets around in each crib just to make sure they weren't hiding under anything, "Edward! Alphonse! Where are you?" she was starting to panic as she tossed the blankets onto the floor.

"No…no, no, no…oh no…" a flash of lighting, "Noooooo!"

Hoenheim came running into the room, he'd heard his wife scream and came to investigate. As he entered the room, he found Trisha kneeling on the ground next to the two cribs, she was crying.

"May god, what happened!" he gasped, he knelt down next to her and placed his arm around her shoulder.

"Th…they're gone! Edward and Alphonse…they're gone."

-To Be Continued-


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One 

--

Five years have passed since the night the Elric brothers' vanished without a trace, Trisha and Hoenheim Elric spent every waking moment searching for them. They had everyone in the town of Risembool searching; they even went as far as taking it to Central. But, after a while, people started saying that the chance of them finding the boys alive at this point was staggeringly unlikely. Another month passed and soon, they too started believing it.

It wasn't long afterwards that they had another son, this one they named Liem. They lived happily for several years, their son grew up never knowing he had two older brothers, his parents kept that from him because they had grown to feel that what happened in the past should not effect the future.

--

"Liem dear, come in for dinner!" Trisha called. A young boy with short brown hair and golden eyes turned his head, he then turned back to his friend and said,

"Looks like I gotta go in now."

"Ok Liem, see you tomorrow." A young girl smiled.

"See you too Winry!" Liem got up and ran off up the path towards his home. He opened the door and went inside, he walked into the kitchen to find his mother setting the table and his father sitting at the table reading a newspaper.

"Mom, Dad, when's dinner?"

"Could you set the cups out dear." Trisha asked.

"Yes mother." Liem walked over to one of the cupboards and took out some cups, Hoenheim looked up from his paper and asked,

"So Liem, tomorrow is your fifteenth birthday, who would you like to invite to your birthday party?"

"Hmmm," Liem thought for a quick moment then smiled, "The Rockbells!"

"Just them?" Trisha asked turning.

"Yeah."

"Well, all right then."

"I figured, after what happened, it would be nice." Liem smiled.

--

The next day it was raining, not a downpour, just a light spring shower. Thunder could be heard a few miles off and lighting would occasionally light up the pale gray sky. Liem gazed intently out the kitchen window, watching the rain drops slide down the glass, he was waiting for Winry and Granny Pinako to arrive. Liem then spun around and walked into the living room, there he found his mom and dad sitting in separate chairs, Hoenheim was reading a book on alchemy and Trisha was mending a pillowcase.

"Can I walk over to Winrys'?" he asked.

"You should learn to be patient Liem." Hoenheim said looking up from his book.

"I know father, I just want to make sure they remembered."

"I'm sure they did honey." Trisha smiled.

"I know mother, I just want to make sure." Liem persisted.

"All right, just make sure to take an umbrella and a jacket." Trisha sighed, Liem smiled and nodded. Hoenheim looked over at his wife when the front door closed and the sound of footsteps faded,

"Trisha…"

"He'll be back soon, then we all can open presents." She replied.

"Yes…" he nodded returning to his book.

--

An hour later Liem returned with Winry and Pinako, it seemed there had been some trouble down near the river and they had gone to help. It had been cleared up so they made their way back with Liem. The two Rockbells where soaking wet when they arrived, Pinako was escorted into the kitchen while Liem escorted Winry over to the small fireplace.

"I'm sure we've got something for you to change into Winry." Liem said.

"Are you sure?" Winry asked, "I thought it was only you and you're a boy."

"Yeah well, it's better then nothing," Liem smiled, "Besides, I think you'll look nice in anything."

"Really? Thank you!" Winry laughed, the two left the living room and made for the kitchen, there Winry was at least able to dry her hair off. Later on the gifts were opened and everybody had cake, the adults sat in the living room talking while Liem and Winry played around the house. The two where upstairs playing hide and seek, Winry had found what appeared to be a closet at first but turned out to be a stair case leading to a third floor. When Liem came to find her, he found her standing at the base of the stairs gazing up the landing.

"Hey, what's up there?" she asked.

"I…don't know, I was told this door was locked." Liem muttered, "Lets check it out." He made his way up the stairs, Winry followed close behind. The climbed all the way to the top, there they found it was just an attic, with several boxes lying around. There were also two cribs, Liem had never seen them before so he walked over and took a peek inside, there was nothing in them.

"Hey Liem, take a look at these boxes." Winry said, she'd been examining some of the smaller boxes sitting near the wall. Liem walked over and opened one of the boxes, inside was baby clothes.

"That's funny, I don't remember any of this stuff." Then something caught his eye, "What's this?" Liem dug through the clothes till he pulled out a small photo album.

"It's a photo album." Winry whispered. Liem opened it to the first page, there was a photo of his father and mother, but, his father was holding a little boy and his mother was holding a small baby boy.

"Who are they?" Winry asked pointing to the two babies.

"I…don't know…" Liem muttered, he flipped through the album some more, he found more photos of the two boys and his parents. There was something wrong with this picture, Liem had never seen these two before and yet…there they were with his parents.

"Liem! Winry! Come down, we've got some great news!" came Trisha Elrics' voice from the first floor. Liem turned back to the first page of the album and took out the photo; he stuck it in his pocket and put everything away. The two ran down stairs closing the door to the attic as they went.

"You called?" Liem said as they walked into the living room.

"Yes," Hoenheim said, "It would seem that we have one more present for you Liem."

"What is it?"

"Here." His father handed him a book; Liem took it and looked down at the title, "Alchemy?"

"Yes, your father is going to start teaching you. We both think you are old enough and we think you'll enjoy learning about it."

"Thank you." He said.

"What's the matter Liem? You seem disappointed?" Pinako asked. Liem looked down at the floor for a moment; he then put his hand in his pocket and pulled out the photo. Holding it out he asked,

"Mother, father, who are they?"

Pinako stood up quickly and said,

"Winry, I think it's time for use to head home, it's getting late." She started ushering Winry towards the door.

"But, I want to know too." Winry protested.

"Come dear, it's getting late and we don't want to over stay our visit." Pinako lead her out the door.

Both Trisha and Hoenheim where looking at their son, he had a very determined look on his face. They then looked down at the photo in his hand, and Trisha answered,

"Liem…honey…"

"I want to know mom." He persisted.

"Liem," Hoenheim said, "They're your older brothers."

"W…what?"

-To Be Continued-


	3. Chapter 2

Wowza! Such a positive outcome! Yey! Starting in the next chapter (chapter three) I'll be answering any questions ya might have (happy). Glad you're all enjoying this one!

* * *

Chapter Three

--

"My brothers…" Liem looked down at the photo, "How…how can I have two older brothers and not know about it?"

"Because Liem," Hoenheim said, "We never told you, your mother and I felt it necessary not to worry you about events of the past."

"Events? What happened?" Liem asked. Trisha and Hoenheim looked at each other then led Liem over to the couch and sat him down. He still had a look of uncertainty on his face as his parents sat down next to him.

"It was seventeen years ago, they were born, Edward was our first, then Alphonse a year later." Hoenheim started to explain, "It was only a month after Alphonse was born that they were taken."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Liem asked.

"Because, we had searched for so long for them, they were never found," Trisha answered, she had a very sad look on her face, "There was very little chance they were still alive, not after so long."

Liem looked down at the carpet and mulled all this over, he may have only just turned twelve but he inherited his fathers uncanny thinking ability. He wanted to know what happened to his older brothers, he wanted to find out if they were still alive. Finally Liem looked up at his parents and said,

"I have…two older brothers…wow." He then slid down off the couch and picked up his alchemy book, "You don't have too worry about me." He then went up to his room and closed the door.

--

The next morning the ground was damp from the rain but it was sunny and Liem was running up the path to Winrys' house. He wanted to tell her about what happened and how he found out that the boys in the picture were his older brothers. He climbed the porch steps and walked up to the door, knocking on the door he waited. Den, Winrys' dog, walked up the steps and nudged Liems' hand, he looked down and laughed,

"Oh hey Den!" he patted the dog on the head then knocked again, "Hm, I wonder where they are. Do you know Den?"

Den just tilted his head and barked, Liem sighed and turned around, he took the photo out of his pocket and looked at it again. Sitting down on the steps, he studied the picture.

"If they disappeared seventeen years ago, and Alphonse was born a year after Edward…they'd be seventeen and eighteen years old." He tilted his head, "Wow."

Standing up, Liem sighed again and started down the steps, he was about half way down the path when something caught his eye. Looking up he noticed a silhouette standing near a large oak tree not too far away, squinting his eyes; Liem tried to make out who it was. The figure tilted its' head and waved, Liem waved back even though he wasn't sure why. Blinking, Liem tried to get a clearer view of who ever it was, but when he blinked again, the figure vanished.

"Huh…I wonder who that was…" Liem muttered, he felt a shiver go down his spine as he started walking again, something just didn't feel right about that person.

--

That evening while Liem was helping his mother set the table for dinner, his father burst into the kitchen. He was very flustered and rushed,

"Honey, what's the matter?" Trisha asked.

"One of the neighbors' barns has caught fire, it's gotten real bad and I'm going to help." Hoenheim answered.

"What! How did that happen?"

"Nobody knows, some suspect arisen but it's not completely clear exactly how it started." He turned to leave again, "Don't worry, I'll be back before you know it."

"Be careful."

Hoenheim gave them both a quick kiss before leaving, Trisha sighed and set up the last of the tableware. Liem looked from his mother to the door then back to his mother, he bit his lower lip in thought before starting for the door. Just as he was about to open the front door, there came a knock,

"Liem dear, could you get that." His mother said from the kitchen. Liem sighed and said,

"All right mom!" he turned to the door again, taking a deep breath he opened the door slowly. There, in the doorway stood a figure in a black rain jacket, Liem found that kind of odd considering it wasn't raining. "Can I help you?"

"Yes," the figure said in what seemed like a light voice, "Is your mother or father at home?"

"Yeah, my mom's in the kitchen," Liem answered, he was getting that odd feeling again, that same one he felt when he'd seen the figure by the tree that morning, "I can get her for you if you'd like."

"Thank you, such a nice young man." The figure nodded. Liem closed the door slowly and made his way back to the kitchen.

"Mom, there's someone at the door for you." Liem said. Trisha turned from the sink and walked over,

"Really, all right then." She followed Liem back towards the front door, but when they reached the living room the figure in the raincoat was standing near the couch. When they walked in the figure looked up and asked,

"Is this…new?"

"Liem, did you let this person in?" Trisha asked slowly.

"No…"

"I see," Trisha walked over to the figure, "Would you like me to take your coat for you?"

"No, thank you ma'am."

"Have a seat, tell me what it is you want." Trisha continued.

"I'm here on family matters ma'am, I was wondering if you could help me."

"Why do you ask here? Surely you could go to the police for such things."

The figure didn't answer, Trisha was giving them a suspicious look, and finally she said,

"It's kind of hard to talk with someone if they're wairing a coat with the hood up, surely you can at least lower your hood, it is quite rude."

"All right…I see no harm in it…" the figure sighed lowering their hood, "How is that ma'am."

Trisha had stood up; she had a horrified look on her face as if she'd seen a ghost. Liem looked up at his mother questioningly; he then looked over at the figure that turned out to be a young man. The young man had dark bluish brown eyes and long dark blonde hair tied up in a high ponytail, he couldn't be more then sixteen or seventeen years old. His features had the hint of innocents but also had a hint of superiority. His eyes had a sting to them; almost as if he was trying to burrow into your soul and tare it out, Liem felt goose bumps forming on his arms.

"Who are you?" Trisha demanded.

"That is not important right now ma'am, what is important is whether or not you know a Trisha and Hoenheim Elric."

"No…it can't…be." Trisha took a step back; she ushered Liem behind her as she slowly backed towards the kitchen.

"What seems to be the problem ma'am," the young man asked, "It's a simple question."

"Stay away…" she snapped, they where in the kitchen now and Trisha was holding up a cleaver.

"Ma'am, there is no need to get hostile," the young man walked into the kitchen, "What, with the way you're acting, it would seem that you're trying to hide something. Perhaps you know these two people."

"Get out of my house, whoever you are!" Trisha shouted, Liems' eyes went wide as he gazed into the eyes of the young man.

"Or…maybe…" the young man took another step closer. Liem took a step out from behind his mother then stood in front of her.

"Liem! Get behind me!"

He did no such thing, instead, he continued to look the young man in the eyes until he was certain.

"You," he said, "You're him aren't you?"

"What?"

"Alphonse." Liem said.

"Alphonse? Alphonse…" the young man walked up to Liem and looked down at him, "Who told you that name?"

"My mom," Liem said looking up, "That would make you my older brother!"

With out expecting it, Liem suddenly felt himself falling and hitting the floor. The figure had sweated his leg out and tripped him.

"I don't ever want to hear that name." He snapped. Trisha rushed over and tried to pick Liem up, but he was already sitting up and preparing to stand,

"How dare you!" she shouted at the young man. He just looked down at her then noticed that there was something on the floor, picking it up he examined it. It was the photo that Liem had been carrying around.

"So…you're Trisha Elric?" he said.

"Yes, I am…"

The young man glared then walked over to a window and glanced out into the gray night, there was a faint glow coming from the burning barn just a ways away, he then turned and looked down at Trisha and Liem,

"You better not be lying…"

"I have no reason to lie." Trisha said standing up, Liem stood up too but stayed behind his mother, he really didn't want to be anywhere near that young man anymore. The young man stormed over to them and grabbed Trisha by the shoulders forcing her to back step several times, she still had the knife in her hand and was more then ready to use it if necessary.

"There's something about you," he said, he brought his face in real close to hers, "I want to see what it is…"

Liem jumped up and charged at the young man, Trisha had already pointed the knife at his side and said,

"Leave this house now…"

"I'm not leaving until I s…hkg," he suddenly learched forward and into the knife, Liem had tackled him in attempt to get him away from his mother, "Wha…t"

"Mom are you all right?" Liem let go of the young man as he staggered back, "Did he hurt you?"

"No…I'm fine honey." Trisha dropped the knife quickly and grabbed Liem by the hand, "We have to find your father, come with me."

The two ran out of the house as the young man was hunched over and bleeding bad, he looked up just as the door closed, his vision growing blurry,

"W…wait…I…" he fell to his knees and violently coughed up blood, "Ah hell…" he grumbled keeling over completely.

--

"Hurry! Get water on that fire!" Hoenheim barked, several men with buckets and such ran over and dumped water on the fire. The more water though tha they used, the more the fire seemed to grow, seeing no other way, Hoenheim clapped his hands and touched the ground, the ground rose up like a tidal wave and came down on the fire, extinguishing it. He ran over and did this in several spots until the fire was nearly put out; it was on his way to a new location that he noticed someone not helping, a young man standing near a tree.

"Hey, why aren't you helping!"

The young man tilted his head; he then walked towards Hoenheim and stopped right in front of him. Hoenheim couldn't see they young mans' face very well in the darkness save for his eyes which seemed to burn as intensely as the fire.

"Well?"

"Why would I want to help?"

"Listen young man, we have to put this fire out or else…"

"Or else what? It's in the middle of nowhere; can you tell me who is any danger? Well I guess all of you are in danger now, but, nobody was when it first started." The young man smirked. Hoenheim frowned; there was something very strange about this young man,

"Who are you?"

"Who am I? Who…am…I…I am the starter of this fire that's who I am."

"What!"

"Yes…that barn was such an eyesore, so, I got rid of it." The young man continued to smirk.

"Lower your hood so I can see your face." Hoenheim glared.

"As you wish…sir…but it will do you no good…unless…"

"Unless what?"

"Unless you know where I can find Trisha and Hoenheim Elric." The young man said lowering his hood. Hoenheims' eyes widened, the young man was a good eighteen years old. His hair was a brilliant gold color and was pulled up in a low neat ponytail; his eyes were equally as gold but burned with a disturbing satisfaction. There was a mildly noticeable scar that resided along the right side of his face, starting near his eye.

"I know them…" Hoenheim said slowly.

"Really," he said in mild surprise, "Then you can tell me where I can find them."

"You found one," Hoenheim glared, "I am Hoenheim Elric."

"Hoenheim…"

"Yes."

The young mans' smirk grew considerably, it was borderline sadistic, he walked closer and said,

"In that case…I've been looking for you…"

-To Be Continued-

* * *

(Evil, sadistic, scary, crazy, psycho, maniac, seven and a half french fries short of a happy meal laugh) 


	4. Chapter 3

**lol:** Spooky eh? Yeah, I guess so. That'll all be explained in this chapter

**Fruitie:** Thank you! (Hugs)

**Kuropuu: **Hee, hee, you'll see!

**anime-girl98-** Here ya go!

**hyperdude-** (pokes puddle of goo) Gosh…I hope you don't stain…XD

**hanjuuluver-** Whee! Hanjuuluver! (Hugs) Yup, I was feelin' angsty…and psycho (sinister grin). Keh, keh, keh

Yey! Reviews! (Hugs reviewers) I lobve you guys X3!

* * *

Chapter Three

--

"Then you've found me, though what you want with me, I don't know." Hoenheim said, "What is your name?"

"That's not important."

"Yes it is, how else will I be able to address you?" Hoenheim questioned, he knew that face but it wasn't possible, not after such a long time.

"I have no intention of telling you what my name is," the young man held out his hand, there was a transmutation circle on his palm; "I am though, going to kill you."

"Is that so? Tell me, why do you intend to kill me?"

"Because," the transmutation circle started glowing a faint red, "she told us too." There was a bright flash of red as the array was fully activated.

--

Liem and his mother made their way hastily up the path in the direction that the burning barn was in, it wasn't burning nearly as much as it had been but it was still in a state where many people needed to be there to try and put it out. Trisha looked around for her husband; Liem stood by a large oak tree not too far away, he watched in mild awe as the various people rushed by with buckets of water and such.

Just as Liem was about to make the decision to join his mother in her search for his father, there was a very loud, earth-shaking explosion. Everyone dropped to the ground, either from the ground shaking or from fear, Liem had been knocked off his feet. He remained lying on the ground with his arms over his head. That couldn't have been from the barn, finally mustering up what was left of his rattled nerves, Liem looked up.

"Y…you?"

"Get up!" it was the young man from the house, "I said get up!" he grabbed Liem by the arm and forced him to stand up.

"I…I…how…"

"Listen to me!"

"She stabbed you! My mother…stabbed…you."

"Yes…she did, and it really hurt." The young man turned and started walking, "Quick, you have to follow me."

Hesitantly, Liem followed him, why was this guy asking him to follow him? And, what was that explosion? Liem wanted to know exactly who this person was and why he tried to kill his mother, why did he look like the baby in the picture when he hates the sound of his own name?

They came around a corner and found Hoenheim, he was kneeling on the ground, Liem ran over to him,

"Father!"

"Liem…what are you doing here? Where's your mother?"

"…" Liem bit his lower lip, "I don't…know…she told me to wait, so I did. That's when there was this explosion."

"It's all right," Hoenheim got up slowly, "Why did the two of you come here?"

Liem side glanced at the young man quickly, as much as he wanted to answer that, something inside was preventing him from speaking. Hoenheim could tell he wanted to say something,

"Never mind, it's all right."

"Father…I think…my brothers' are alive." Liem looked down at the ground; Hoenheim smiled and patted him on the back.

"You know what Liem…I think…you're right." Hoenheim turned and looked in the direction the older young man had been and found he was gone. Liem turned to look in the same direction, he then turned to look in the direction the other young man had been, and he was gone too.

"Father…"

"Liem…we should find your mother." Hoenheim led Liem back to where he'd been waiting. They started looking around but Trisha was nowhere to be found, the barn had been completely extinguished and people where cleaning things up. That's when someone shouted,

"Somebody help! There's a person trapped under here!"

--

Like a crushing wave, the world seemed to crash down around Liem, shock induced silence and shadow numbed his senses as he and his father hastily made their way over. People where crowding around one particular area where debre from the barn had been rattled loose by the explosion, they where digging through it trying to get at the one trapped.

Liem pulled back, a very painful knot had started forming in his stomach as he watched his father run over to help. The world was spinning, everything had gone numb, he was seeing but not seeing, they pulled someone out from the rubble.

"Oh my god…Trisha."

--

-Four Years Later-

"Hey Winry." Liem waved as he walked up the path towards the Rockbell residence, Winry was standing on the porch with Den sitting next to her. She waved back,

"Hey Liem!"

"You want to go for a walk?"

"Sure."

The two started walking down the dirt path towards the river, Den was following close behind. They didn't talk too much but once they got to the edge of the river Winry asked,

"So, how's your alchemy coming along?"

"Oh fine," Liem shrugged, "How about your mechanics? Have you gotten any better?"

"Don't play smart with me, you know darn well that I've gotten better." Winry slapped him on the back. Liem just smirked and put his hands behind his head,

"All right then…"

"So…how have you been doing?" Liem raised an eyebrow and gave her a questioning glance, "Since your mother…"

"What? Died? Fine I guess, I've been mostly working on improving my alchemy and father seems to be more and more enthusiastic about it. Why?" Liem answered simply.

"It's been four years, nobody could figure out what caused the explosion…I was just wondering, that's all."

Liem sighed and lowered his arms, he picked up as rock and chucked it into the river, he picked up another rock and threw that in the river as well,

"Winry…I never told you about the photo we found in the attic on my twelfth birthday did I?"

"No…ever since the fire you haven't said much at all."

"The two boys in the picture are my older brothers."

"What…"

"They vanished before I was born," Liem muttered, "Then the night of the fire, I saw one of them…he came to our house just after my father left to help."

"Huh…"

"He attacked us and got stabbed, that's when my mother and I went to find my father…"

"Oh…"

"I believe it to be misplaced anger and hatred but…I can't help but think if he hadn't shown up, she wouldn't have died." Liem sighed and started walking back up the path. Winry sighed and followed him,

"Liem, listen,"

"I appreciate you listening Winry, but, I wasn't hoping for anything in return." Liem turned to look at her, "I'm not going to do anything about it, what's done is done, so long as I never see his face again I'll be fine."

"Wait, that's not what I was going to say," Winry glared, "I was wondering, since you have two older brothers, where was the second one?"

"I don't know…I just saw one." Liem shrugged, he knew that wasn't what she wanted to say so he answered her simply and left. He made his way back down the path towards his house when something flew past his head and landed in the ground just a few feet away from him. Liem froze and looked down, it was a rock, frowning Liem looked up and around for the one who threw it, he was of course alone on the path. Sighing he continued walking but stopped a second later,

"You again?" he muttered, "What do you want?"

"A moment of your time."

"Fine…but I want to ask you a question first."

"All right."

Liem looked up; he had a very serious glare in his eyes as he asked,

"Are you really…Alphonse?"

"…"

"Well?"

"I hate hearing that name…but yes…"

Liem walked up to the young man, who was now just slightly older looking then he was four years ago, and punched him in the face.

"You better have a damn good reason for showing your face here."

Alphonse, who was sitting on the ground now rubbing the side of his face with a very aggravated look, glared up at him. He then stood up and brushed the dirt and dust off his clothes as he replied,

"I want to talk to you…about what happened four years ago."

-To Be Continued-

* * *

Just thought I'd share this with everyone, I named Liem 'Liem' cause one of my favorite movie actors is Liam Neeson. Only when I was typing this I didn't realize that his name was spelled 'Liam' and not 'Liem' but by spelling his name with an 'e' instead of an 'a' makes it my own…yeah…ok. Review! 


	5. Chapter 4

**Agent000-** Cliffhangers of doom! Kyahahaha! Ehem…right…here ya go buddy! n.n

**Kuropuu-** Isn't he though! I guess one could say he's a mix between Ed and Al, personality wise. You'll be getting an inside looky loo at what happened to the brothers in this chapter.

**Anime-girl98-** lol, wow! That part made an impression didn't it!

**Hyperdude-** Raises some questions eh? We shall see, yes, we shall see indeed.

Well, as I promised, chapter four would revel the mystery disappearance and reappearance of the Elric brothers…yeah…heh, heh, heh.

* * *

Chapter Four

--

"You…what?" Liem glared at Alphonse in disbelief, how could he want to talk about what happened four years ago, what is he playing at anyway?

"You heard me…I want to talk about what happened four years ago." Alphonse glared back, "Do you want me to tell you or not?"

"Why?"

"What…"  
"Why of all times do you want to talk about it?" Liem felt an unpleasant sensation of anger building up inside him.

"Because…some…one…" Al paused when he noticed the look Liem was giving him, "You're mad…"

"What makes you think that?" Liem nearly hissed.

"Liem…" Alphonse reached out and put his hand on Liems' shoulder, "It's equivalent exchange."

"Oh ho?" Liem scoffed, "And what do YOU get in return?"

"Your cooperation…it's been four years and it may not seem like it but, a lot has changed." Alphonse said simply. Liem frowned, what was going on? Giving an irritated sniff, Liem shrugged his shoulder out of Als' grip and said,

"It was your fault…she died…I want nothing to do with you."

"Why? Because she decided to leave the house? Listen, perhaps if you'd just hear me out you'd understand…"

Liem stormed past him and continued walking, Al rounded quickly and grabbed him by the arm and twisted it behind his back so he couldn't move,

"Please don't walk away when I'm trying to talk to you…" he hissed.

"Let go…"

"Will you listen to me?"

"Let go!" Liem tried to pull his arm out of Als' grip but found the grip to be unnaturally strong.

"If I wanted to kill you I'd have already done it," Al snapped, "Now stop acting like a child."

"Tsk…fine…"

Al let go and straighten himself out; he then sniffed and said,

"Follow me…" he turned and started walking, Liem followed him but had a very aggravated look on his face, he didn't care what Al had to say.

They hadn't been walking long when Alphonse suddenly stopped and turned around, he had an unreadable expression on his face as he said,

"All right…"

"All right what?"

"I'm going to tell you everything…starting from the beginning."

"Fine, I'm listening…" Liem crossed his arms and glared. Alphonse nodded and started,

"As you may have been told, my brother and I were taken from our home several years ago. I was barely a year old when it happened so I can't remember it nearly as well as my brother, but that doesn't mean I don't remember bits and pieces of it." He paused for a second, "Anyway, we were taken far away to some large city, I could tell it was a city from all the lights." Al paused again, Liem frowned and said,

"You're rambling…if you want to tell me something then say it."

"I think…it'll be much easier if I showed you." Al sighed, "Just remember, if I wanted to kill you I would have done it already."

"What?" Liem lowered his arms for a quick second, which was all Al needed to suddenly lunge forward and tackle him to the ground. He was sitting right on top of Liem holding him down,

"Look at me." He said.

"What are you doing?"

"Just look at me!" Al snapped, Liem glared up at him for a quick second but found he couldn't look away.

"That's…not possible…" he muttered, there were two very distinct looking transmutation circles in his eyes, "How did…" Liem froze almost instantly as the arrays flickered to life and made the world around him swirl into pitch-blackness.

Al got up off him and dragged him off to the side of the path they'd been walking, he sighed and sat down next to him and muttered,

"I hate it when they fight…but if being rough means showing him the truth then so be it." He glanced over at Liem who was motionless on the ground as if in a deep sleep, "Alphonse…" he sighed, "Al…phonse…" he let the name mull about in his mind as he grimaced, he really couldn't explain why he hated that name so much.

--

Liem's POV 

It was dark for what seemed like forever, I didn't like that too much. Why did he attack me like that? What had he done to me? What did he mean when he said it would be easier to show me what happened? He sure had a strange way of doing things…

I glanced around the darkness a few more times before a thought crossed my mind, what if he really did kill me and this was what death was like? I had to admit though it wasn't what I thought it would be like…I pictured more happening, life flashing before my eyes, pearly gates, stuff like that. Well, either way, I really didn't want to be dead, nor did I want to die by his hands.

Glancing down at my hands I noticed that they were transparent, then glanced down at my feet they too were transparent. It felt as if my very heart dropped into my stomach,

"I…can't be dead…"

_"You're not dead…death is much worse…"_ Alphonses' voice came out of nowhere. I looked up and around seeing nothing but darkness.

"Then what is this?"

_"Simple really, your soul…has been placed in my body." _

"What?"

_"You're soul is free to wonder the open doors of my memories to find the truth."_

"How did you do that?"

_"Why don't you just look around, I don't like having people just stand there and do nothing…"_

I sniffed irritatedly and started walking, it was a very strange sensation to be a soul walking around another persons mind, it kind of felt like walking underwater with large rocks in your shoes. As I walked I started noticing things, a smell in particular, it was kind of damp and moldy but also had a faint hint of soap. Continuing walking, it wasn't long before I came to what looked like a large building completely surrounded by a large fence with barbed wire all around the top and entrance.

_"Before you go any further…you should know…I was barely a year old when I got this memory."_

"Shut up, if you want me to see the truth then let me see it without having to listen to you. I'm only doing this because you didn't give me much choice, to be completely honest; I don't really care what you have to say. I just want to see what made you so…" I stopped, I knew what I wanted to say but I waited to see if Alphonse would respond, he did.

_"What? Made me so what?"_

"Unforgiving and messed up in the head…"

_"Hnm…"_ Al made a strange noise then said, _"The only unforgiving one I see here is YOU Liem…now why don't just get a move on it, I don't like sitting here doing nothing."_

I was forgiving…I just won't forgive him, I pouted and said,

"How do you expect me to get in there? It's not exactly open to the public."

_"You're a soul inside a persons' memory, just walk through the walls and fences."_ Came Als' reply, he sounded irritated when he said it and that made me smirk slightly. Taking his advice, I walked right through the barbed wire fence and right through the cement walls of the musty old building.

It was a very dark building with very dim lights coming from only a hand full of rooms. Walking down the hall till I came to a door that was opened slightly and voices could be heard.

"It has been done, my lady." A gruff voice said.

"Very good, very, very good, they are of perfect age." A womans voice said.

"Perfect…age…my lady?"

"Yes, not to young but not old enough to remember their parents faces' when they grow up." The woman chuckled, "The older child…he is only a year old…he will be taken to the third floor. As for the new born, he will be taken down the hall to the last door on the right, now go."

"Yes my lady."

The door opened and I involuntarily took a step back as a tall man with short dark hair, he had a beard and mustache and a very dark and serious expression on his face. The man was wairing a black trench coat over a navy blue uniform. He was carrying in his arms a small child no older then a year; the child was sleeping silently.

My eyes widened slightly, the child was the same one from the photograph, he was the boy that his father was holding.

"That…must be Edward." I muttered.

_"Yes…that's Edward…that was also the last time I actually had any contact with my older brother."_

"Where did they take him?"

_"I don't know…but when I saw him again…well…you'll see." _Als' voice drifted off into silence as the scene before me grew hazy and disappeared into shadow. The next memory to appear seemed to take place a few years later. Alphonse was in this memory, I watched as the three-year-old being led into the same room I'd seen in the earlier. The same woman from before was standing in front of him looking down at the boy; she smirked and said,

"Hello…little one."

"H…hello…ma'am…" Al replied timidly.

"Can I ask you a question?" she smiled, it wasn't a kind smile though, it was a smile that hid cruel intentions.

"Of…c…course ma'am."

"Tell me…your name…"

The little Alphonses' eyes went very wide; he started wringing his small hands as he turned pale.

"What's the matter…little one?" the woman smiled again, she waved her hand and the door I was standing next to opened. In stepped the man from before, with him was a four year old Edward.

"W…who is that?" Al muttered.

"He…is your older brother…little one." The woman smiled, "Now, answer my question."

Alphonse gulped and started wringing his hands again; he was looking from the woman to the man to his older brother then back to the woman. He sniffed and muttered in an almost inaudible whisper,

"Alphonse…"

"What was that?" the woman smiled. The four-year-old looked up at the three-year-old, I could see there was something wrong with how that child was eyeing his younger brother.

"A…Alphonse…" he stuttered, he looked up timidly at the woman, she was smiling widely. Seeing this Al smiled timidly too, suddenly out of nowhere Edward attacked him. I watched in shock as the two brothers scuffled on the ground, Al looking shocked and terrified and Ed in a sort of blind fury.

"That's why…" I thought out loud, "he hates hearing his name, because every time he says it…his brother attacks him."

Like last time, the memory started to fade away into the darkness; I had to sit down for a moment to rethink what I'd just seen.

_"Get up, you still have more to see."_ Als' voice snapped, I sighed, it was kinda odd. After that one memory, I started to view Al differently, what had happened to make him the way he is now?

"All right…" I got up and started walking, after what seemed like a long time another memory started forming. It appeared to be at least ten years later and I found myself standing in the middle of a very large room, glancing around I noticed that there were several people in the room, all looking in my direction. They were shrouded in shadow but you could still see them, just not their faces.

A bright light fell on one particular spot in the large room, the spot was where a thirteen and fourteen year old Alphonse and Edward. They both had very blank looks on their faces as if they had nothing and were constantly told so; it was very depressing to see them like that.

The woman from before was standing right behind them; she still had that unkind smile on her face that made a persons' soul shiver. She was the first to speak,

"If I may have the councils attention, I'd like to present our first two case studies." Everyone in the room turned and listened, "These two were found all alone and we brought them into our…embrace…to see exactly how the human mind reacts to different environments."

"Lady Dante, we have reason to believe that these children were taken from their home and family without the consent of their parents." A man said.

"I assure you, sir, that these boys were found on the street." Dante said calmly.

"On the streets…of a small town known as Risembool perhaps?"

"Why, no sir, they were found right here in our own fair city, in the back allies." Dante said just as calmly. The man who asked the question just nodded, I could tell though by the way he nodded his head the man didn't believe her, but everyone else in the room seemed convinced.

"Carry on then…"

"Yes sir," Dante bowed her head, "Our tests have lead to one conclusion and that, my friends is why I am here." She took out a small vial of red liquid and took Edwards' hand, "That by using alchemy, a persons' mind can be altered to do as you command, you can also 'endow' them with certain alchemic abilities that can be triggered by the mind."

"Is that so?" a man that looked suspiciously like the man I'd seen in the first memory said with mild interest.

"Yes."

"Could we have a demonstration?" he asked.

"Of course." Dante bowed her head again; she then opened the small vial and held out the older Elrics hand so that his balm was face up. She then poured about half the vial of red liquid onto his out stretched hand.

"Hn…" Ed tried to pull his hand away but Dante had a tight grip on his wrist, with her index finger; she drew a transmutation circle in the red liquid and activated it.

My eyes widened as the liquid started glowing brightly and started seeping into the small boys' hand. His eyes started to water and he started to pull back harder, suddenly, he just stopped. Dante smirked slightly and let go of his hand,

"Good," she then turned and addressed the council, "Now watch as I turn brother…against brother with a single phrase."

There was a large amount of whispering among the shadowed men, some of the whispers were angry while others were intrigued, there was also a good amount of questioning whispers but all of which were ignored by Dante. She took a few steps away from the brothers and said,

"Kill…Alphonse."

Edward looked up, his expression was dark and filled with hate, Alphonse took several steps back and muttered,

"Brother…what did she…do to you?" He didn't get a reply, at least not the one he was hoping for. Edward held up the hand that Dante had drawn the transmutation circle on, the array looked as if it had burned into the palm of his hand, it then activated. The air around his hand seemed to grow to grow dense and heat up; with a wave of his hand the dense hot air ignited into flames and was sent flying straight at Al.

"My god…" I involuntarily took a step back, "Don't tell me…"

_"Yes…my brother was the one who set fire to the barn four years ago…"_ Als' voice said.

"The…explosion…was him too?"

_"Yes...though he's still not very good at controlling explosions, he's still extremely good at making them."_

"Wait," I turned to see what had happened to the thirteen year old Alphonse to find him lying on the ground just out of the way of the attack, the floor next to him was charred up pretty bad. Dante walked over to where Al was lying and knelt down, she had the open vial in her hand as she flipped him over.

"Little one…you have to fight back if you want to stay alive." She said in a slightly mocking sentimental manner.

"The…the light…colors…flashes…can't…see…" Al stammered. Dantes' eyes narrowed, she then took the vial and poured the rest of the red liquid over the boys' eyes. Al started rubbing at his eyes as if something was irritating them, Dante took hold of his hands and said,

"Don't rub at them, you'll be able to see in a moment."

Al gasped, everything started to come back to him, but, when he looked over at his brother, his eyes narrowed to a very mean glare. Dante smirked and said,

"Good, now…kill Edward."

I watched in shock as the Alphonse I know now appeared in the eyes of the younger Al, if there was one thing that defined him the most now, it was his eyes. There was a depth to them, a cold dark abyss filled with secrets and a hidden hatred, his eyes could freeze a persons' blood in their veins and dig into their soul.

The younger Al jumped up and charged at his brother, Ed held up his hand again only to find he couldn't move, he'd made eye contact with his younger brother and just froze, this gave Al the chance to attack him. That ended up being a very bad idea; Edward had managed to make an explosion only to have Al tackle him causing the explosion to remain in the same area.

When the dust cleared, both boys were unconscious, Alphonse was trembling involuntarily and Edward had a rather nasty cut down the right side of his face, just below his eye.

"Hey…" I muttered.

_"You are talking to me?"  
_"Yeah…I…didn't know."

_"…"_ Al didn't say anything, _"I'm not the only victim here…if you want to know why my brother is acting the way he is…you'll have to keep looking…"_

"What?"

_"There are two more memories I ant you to see…"_

"Show me then."

The dark room vanished and once again I found myself walking, the images of the last memory still in my head, how could that woman do that? Who was she anyway? Dante…she was the cause of all this.

It wasn't long after, that I found myself standing in yet another dark room, it was similar to the one that I was in at the beginning of this little trip, the only difference was the fact that there was a chair sitting in the middle. In that chair was Edward, he was bandaged up from the fight and seemed to have the blank expression on his face again.

My gaze turned to an opening door, Dante walked in, she didn't look too happy. She stopped just behind the boy and looked down at him,

"Well, you succeeded in impressing the council with your ability…but failed to do as you were told, therefore, you will have to be punished…just like your brother who also failed." She said, Dante snapped her fingers and several smaller doors opened. Out of those doors came several chimeras, "I can't have failures in my research." She snapped her fingers again as she turned and left.

The chimeras charged, Edward remained seated, I took a step forward to try and do something but Al stopped me by saying,

_"Don't bother, remember, your just a soul viewing a memory, you can't do anything."_

"But…"

_"Watch…"_

I turned and watched, the first chimera to reach the boy jumped at him, Edward reached out and caught the creature's leg. The look in his eyes had changed again, they were burning with such malice and anger, they were the exact opposite from his brothers, his gaze could incinerate somebodies soul.

He brought the creature down, just as it hit the concrete floor it caught fire and burned to death. Edward stood up and held up his hand, the last thing I remember seeing was the entire room just suddenly being engulfed in flames and hearing Edward say,

"Da…n…te…you're the one…who needs to be punished."

Everything went dark once again, I'd lost feeling in my knees and was on all fours trying not to think about what just happened. Als' voice then spoke,

_"She did this to him…I may not have known him very well…but I know he isn't like that by nature. He shows no empathy for anyone or anything, he tends to so little interest in other peoples' well being and sees himself as better. He's the one who told me that if I went to your house that I'd find what we were looking for when he was planning on causing that fire just for fun. Bet he didn't realize that we would find what we were looking for."_

"When did he start acting like that?" I asked.

_"Just after that last memory…there's one more you have to see, lets go."_

"I remember reading about this in one of my fathers' books, it described personality disorders."

_"So…"_

"Lack of empathy, manipulative, egocentric…he's a sociopath."

_"Are you saying he's crazy?"_

"No…not really…I'm just saying that there's a name for the way your…our brother is acting…" I replied simply.

_"When I let you out…we have to talk face to face…"_ Was all Al said, I sighed and started walking again. This time the memory just appeared, I paused and looked around, I was back in Risembool. Turning, I found the charred remains of the burning barn, Edward was standing next to it looking down at the spot where my mother had been found after the explosion, the look on his face was emotionless, a younger Alphonse walked up behind him.

"Brother…"

"Yeah I know!" he snapped.

"Come on brother…" Al put his hand on his brothers' shoulder.

"You know I wouldn't let anything happen to you right?" he snapped again.

"Of course brother…"

"You got stabbed didn't you…"

"Yeah…but it's ok now…it wasn't as bad as I thought it was." Al replied.

"Don't let it happen again!" Ed snapped, he then stormed off leaving Al alone for a moment, I watched as the younger Al sighed and shook his head saying,

"Oh brother, I know deep down you care…but you're unable to show it…" he looked up, "I'm going to find a way to fix that, no matter what."

That's when everything went hazy and started spinning, I felt myself being pulled away as everything went black.

--

Alphonse opened his eyes, inhaling and exhaling he returned Liems' soul to his body. Liem sat up slowly and rubbed his head, he looked around with a dazed expression until his eyes fell on Al who was still inhaling and exhaling as if he'd just run a mile. Liem tilted his head and asked,

"What's the matter?"

"Nothing…"

"You said you wanted to talk to me once I was out." Liem said. Alphonse sighed and got up, he looked down at Liem and said,

"We are brothers…I know that…therefore we will refur to each other as such."

"Hm?"

"Please don't call him that…ever…"

"Wait…I didn't mean anything by it, I just…"

"Don't…I just want to make that clear ok." Al said holding out his hand to help Liem up. Liem took it and got up. He brushed himself off and replied,

"You said you wanted my help…well…you've got it."

Alphonse looked at him questioningly, he then crossed his arms,

"I thought you were mad at me."

"I'm allowed to change my mind aren't I? Besides, we're…brothers…family." Liem smiled and held out his hand, Al took it and smirked.

"What about your father?"

"We'll need to talk to him first, but he'll understand." Liem answered with an innocent smirk.

"All…right…"

"So, what is it you need help with?" Liem asked.

"…" Al gave a side glance then answered, "My brother was taken…again…I want to get him back."

"Taken? By Dante?"

"Yes…"

"Then we'll have to get him back."

-To Be Continued-

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Well! That was longer then I'd anticipated! Oh well…review and you'll get another chapter, hee, hee, hee. 


	6. Chapter 5

**Kuropuu:** (joins in the stabbing) Neya! Die Dante! Die! (Sits down and munches happily on sour straws) n.n

**Agent000:** Yes…I figured Dante was as good as any…and…I was going to just make up some bad guy then I was like…errrrrm, can't think of one. So I went with Dante…I don't like her so I can make her suffer (grins evilly).

**Epobbp:** Isn't it though!

**Fullmetal lover: **Thank you (hugs)! Well, I did say I'd explain everything in chapter four…(it says five but it's four XI).

**Hanjuuluver:** I know! (Cries while tying Al up and locking him away in my closet muttering 'nothing will ever harm you again!') I shall join you! (Hits Dante with a stick)

Informative angst is fun (grins evilly).

**Avada Kadavra Fuck you: **Colonel Edward Mustang? Where'd that come from? But yes, they will meet and oh…will they meet (cackles). That's going to be fun to write cause both Liem and Edward have a fun wittle surprise up their sleeves (goes and tries to figure out what that is exactly j/k).

Did I deliver or what! I'm hyper and can't move from the neck down whoo hoo! On the eighth was my TKD testing for green belt (which I totally pwned) then the very next day I'm called in to work TT.TT…that is just mean…curse the Man! Ok I'm done n.n

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Chapter Five

--

Hoenheim sat silently on the couch looking at the two boys; he had a look of understanding on his face. Sighing, he got up and said,

"Look at the two of you…"

"Dad, I…we…have to do something…" Liem said also standing up, Alphonse stood as well. Hoenheim walked over to them, placing his hands on each of their shoulders he said,

"I know."

"Then…"

"You two go get him back."

Liem grinned and nodded, he turned and started for the upstairs to get some stuff leaving his father with Alphonse, he kind of figured it would be nice if the two of them talked…or something.

"So…you're…"

"It's been a long time Alphonse…" Hoenheim said placing his free hand on Als' other shoulder, Alphonse though flinched at the sound of his name, "How have you been?"

"I…" Al paused and looked down at the floor, he couldn't place this feeling he was having, it was mixture of emotions he couldn't recollect ever experiencing.

"You have to understand, your mother and I did everything we could to find you and your brother…"

"I…hm…" Al didn't make eye contact, there was just something about the way Hoenheim was talking to him that made him feel strange. He'd never been talked to in quite this manner, by anyone, "sorry…"

"Alphonse?" Hoenheim tried to look Al in the eyes but found that he had them shut tight, "You're not the one who should be sorry…it's not your fault."

Al shoved his fathers' hands off his shoulders and backed away, he glared at him before saying,

"Don't…talk to me, don't touch me, don't come anywhere near me!" he turned and ran out the door, he couldn't stand being in the same room…and he hated that feeling.

It wasn't more then twenty minutes later that Liem walked out of the house carrying a kind of messenger like bag. He'd said good bye to his father and was more or less ready to go but he first wanted to stop by Winrys' to say good bye. Al didn't mind so long as they got going, they had to get to the train station to buy tickets. When they arrived at the Rockbell residence Den looked up and barked a few times. Winry stepped out of the house to see what Den was barking about when she noticed Liem walking down the path towards her.

She smiled and waved, but then her eyes fell on Alphonse and she lowered her hand slightly. Apart from the photo she'd seen and the description Liem had told her, Winry had never actually met Alphonse, though there was something about him that seemed unnaturally familiar about him. When they came to a stop at the bottom of the porch steps she asked,

"Are you going somewhere Liem?"

"Yeah, I am, just dropped by to tell ya see you later." Lime replied with a shrug.

"Ah, I see…" Winry sighed, "So, you must be Alphonse?"

"Yes…"

"It's kind of hard to believe you and Liem are related."

"How so?" Als' eyes narrowed just slightly. Winry didn't answer right away; instead she sighed and took something out of her pocket, and walking over to Liem she handed him a slip of what looked like paper.

"Well…"

"What?" Al crossed his arms and tilted his head, "I know we've never met and I'm sure…Liem…here has told you about his first encounter with me."

"Yes."

"Well, haven't you ever heard of benefit of the doubt?" Al uncrossed his arms and turned. Liem snickered slightly,

"You don't have to worry Winry, he's different from before."

"Liem," Winry led him a little ways away from where Alphonse was standing, "How do you know it's not a trick?"

"To be honest, I don't. But, he IS my brother no matter how I look at it and…I think what he told me is the truth." Liem said.

"Just be careful all right, there's just something about him I don't trust." Winry gave him a quick hug.

"If it'll make you feel better, I will."

Liem and Alphonse left the Rockbell residence and made their way to the small train station, Alphonse told him to get two one way tickets to Central. Now, Liem had only heard of Central city when his father mentioned about the military, so this would be the first time he's actually visited the city. The train arrived and they boarded, they found their seats and waited for the train to depart, it was at that moment that Liem asked,

"Why did you attack us four years ago?"

"What do you mean?"

"You tried to kill my…our…mother, four years ago."

"Oh…that, well…" Alphonse gazed boredly out the window and answered, "I wasn't trying to kill anyone…"

"You were about to strangle her."

"Well, perhaps if she hadn't stabbed me the both of you would have seen what I was really trying to do." Al retorted sounding slightly offended.

"Huh?"

"She's my mother…why would I try to kill her? What I was trying to do was look into her soul to see if she was lying or not…that's all."

"Really…" Liem crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat, "Huh…"

"You know, that left a scar, see…" Al lifted his shirt slightly and pointed, sure enough there was indeed a scar, "I guess I deserved it, I should have stated my purpose there better."

"You think…"

"Hey, younger brother, watch it…"

The two continued to carry on a small conversation until Liem brought up Dante, he wanted to know more about her and her reasons for taking them. Alphonse was reluctant to answer but finally cracked, it made him look as if he were suffering an ulcer or something.

"You really don't like talking about her?"

"You have a nasty talent for stating the obvious," Al grumbled, "After all those things she put us through not once did she tell us the whole reason for her doing what she was doing. If we did a good job then we were given things, if we did a bad job then she sicked her pet chimera's on us. Brother, of course, would always torch them while I sat in a corner, at that time he had no idea how much he scared me, to even be in the same room with him made my skin crawl."

"Does he know now?" Liem questioned, he could tell that Al was about to spill the beans…again…and was going to get as much out of it as he possibly could. The more information about these people he could get the better he could use said information to help them, at least that was his theory.

"Oh yes, he knows," Al sighed, " He knows…because once when we were being 'punished' one of the chimera's had actually escaped his wrath and attacked me. Needless to say, that scared the living crap out of me, but being the older brother that he was his instinct always seemed to kick in at the last moment. He easily killed the chimera by making it explode…" Al paused, there was a very clear look on his face that he was treading in dangerous waters.

"And?" I tried.

"It was that display of power and control that scared me, even more so then being attacked by a near starving chimera. Seeing that he had the power to end something just like that, it was too much too fast…and I was about fourteen when it happened, being so sheltered I wasn't use to seeing something quite like that so it was pretty traumatic."

"How so?"

"I didn't speak, or eat, or do anything…I was in a sense in a sort of mental coma, I was conscious but my mind didn't process things and I was oblivious to the world around me. It was in those few months that I discovered my 'ability'. Since I'd only used it once and I did it instinctively, I had no idea how to actually use it…until that moment."

"I see…" Liem really wasn't sure what to make of all that other then Edward was extremely dangerous and extremely mental, that was not a positive combination.

"As for Dante, I found out that her associate, the one who kidnapped my brother and I, is actually somebody very important."

"That so? Who is it?"

"Don't know, just know he's important." Alphonse shrugged, "There also seems to be some officer in the military that's interested in finding my brother and I, I don't know who it is so don't bother asking."

He'd caught the look Liem had on his face and read it like an open book, seeing that he wasn't able to ask that question Liem asked a different one,

"How exactly do you expect to get your brother back?"

"I know where she's keeping him and I know the layout of the area, it shouldn't be that hard to get in and out."

"But what about guards?"

"I told you, I know that building like the back of my hand."

"Right…" Liem frowned, they'd been talking for so long that neither of them had noticed that the train had left the station and was already several miles away from Risembool. Liem looked out the window at the failing light and said, "You know, this'll be the first time I've left Risembool…"

"Yeah well, don't get your hopes up too much…Risembool is probably the only place I can think of that isn't tainted by politics and pointless battles." Al scoffed. Liem frowned when he heard this,

"Is it really that bad?"

"Central literally lives up to its' name, it is the center of the country, it gets all the news from all regions of Amestris. The east is probably the worst, but then there's the south that's not doing so well and the north…with Drachma…not any better. The west is doing better but it won't be very long before that's tainted too…nope, Risembool is the only place I can think of that is still peaceful." Al closed his eyes and started to doze, Liem did the same thing. But the words his older brother said had not settled well in his mind and many new questions started to rise.

It took at least two and a half days to get to Central, the two brothers spent most of their time either sleeping, carrying on light conversation or just gazing dazedly out the window at the scenery going by. Once they'd finally arrived in Central, Liem was the first to get off, he was sore but excited about seeing the city, Al didn't show nearly as much enthusiasm.

"So, this is Central?" Liem gazed up at all the buildings, it was a very nice city considering, the buildings were mostly all white and the people looked friendly. One thing though Liem noticed, were all the men in blue uniforms, he turned to Al and asked,

"Who are those guys?"

"Military men…but I find it odd that there are so many here at the train station…" Al answered looking around, he spotted a news paper lying on the ground so he picked it up and started reading the heading, "Oh my…that explains it…"

"What?"

"Apparently there's a serial killer going around killing military officers." Al shrugged.

"Say what!"

"Oh don't worry, it says here that the only victims have been State Alchemists and those who've gotten in the way…nothing to worry about."

Liem was giving Al a look that said he was being stupid and that there was absolutely everything to worry about. This was not what he'd hoped for when he first arrived in a new, at least for him, city, to find out there's a murderer going around.

"Come on little brother…we have business to attend to." Al took Liem by the upper arm and started to drag him out of the train station. The two made it onto the main street and started walking; Liem looked on edge whereas Alphonse seemed to be right at home. A car drove by and Liem paused and turned to watch it, but the car itself came to a stop, it reversed all the way back to where Alphonse and Liem were standing and the window rolled down.

"You two wouldn't happen to be brothers would you?" a mans voice from inside the car asked.

"Why do you as?" Al glared.

"Yeah, we're brothers…" Liem answered, it was a harmless question after all, though it was kind of odd that the person asked it just out of random.

"How long have you both been living in Central?" the man asked.

"What is your reason for asking us these questions?" Al demanded, "Is there a sensuous going on that I'm not aware of?"

That's when two people, a rather large man and a woman, in military uniforms got out of the car and grabbed the two brothers, they tossed them into the car and drove off.

-To Be Continued-

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Ok…I'm sleepy…that's why I ended the chapter the way I did. I was actually hoping to get Edward into this chapter but I guess not, that'll be in the next chapter so you'll just have ta read and review! Whahahaha…cough, cough…(lies down and goes to sleep).


	7. Chapter 6

**Epobbp:** zzzz…LLAMA! Oh…right! Here ya go!

**Agent000:** Mwahahahahahahahaha! (Extra evil laugh)

**Kuropuu:**…..(Shifty eyes)…..

**Fullmetal-flame-lover-** I've never really known the real time between the two places, I've read the same things, some say it's half a day, one said it was two days, I just typed up the first thing that came ta mind…to be honest. You get a hug! (Hug)

**Avada Kadavra Fuck you-** Hello again! Hee…yes…Ed shows up in this chapter! (Grins evilly)

**Hanjuuluver-** Sleep deprivation is one of the key ingredients to becoming a manga ka (that's me life goal n.n)…well…Al's not the most trusting person in this story…(ha! If Al's like this…just wait till you see Ed! Cackle!)

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Chapter Seven

--

Liem sat stiffly next to Alphonse, who looked as if he'd bite somebodies head off if they so much as breathed, in the back seat of their captures' car. He was feeling very stupid at the moment and mentally screaming and berating himself for being such an idiot, also making a mental note not to talk to anyone in Central unless he actually knew them. Alphonse was feeling irritated that Liem had been so nieve about talking to military personnel in Central and not knowing that it was just plain stupid to answer any of the questions they had to ask. He was also making a mental note that younger siblings are not to be trusted alone in a large city such as this.

The two military personnel sitting in the back seat of the car, the larger man had taken up the seat in the front of the car, with them were eyeing them questioningly. Finally the man who'd been asking them the questions spoke,

"Do you know who I am?"

Liem didn't answer, he was still berating himself and telling himself just to shut up and let Alphonse do all the talking…if he was going to talk at all.

"I can't say that we've met." Alphonse answered simply, though to the properly trained ear and eye Alphonse was clearly shooting poison daggers.

"My name is Lt. Col. Maes Hughes and this is 1st Lt. Riza Hawkeye," he gestured to the woman, "And Major Armstrong." He gestured to the large man in the front.

"Uh, huh," Alphonse frowned, "So what do you want?"

"Would you boys happen to be Edward and Alphonse?"

Als' eye twitched, he then smirked and replied in a mock sincere tone,

"That depends, do we want to be?"

"Our superior officer would like an audience with the two brothers and you two fit the description legitimately well." Hawkeye answered. Alphonse just laughed and elbowed Liem in the said saying,

"Well, I'll give you points for trying," he then became very serious, "This is my brother Liem, and yes…I am Alphonse."

"Liem? I though you hand an older brother named Edward?" Lt. Col. Hughes enquired. Al just sighed and gave him one of his superior smirks,

"Yes well…he's not available at the moment. Besides, even if he was here he'd be too busy trying to kill you to really care what you or your superior officer has to say, dear brother mine has such a short temper."

Liem snorted suddenly at that last comment, he remembered from the memories that Edward was not that tall, at least from his perspective. He noticed he was getting odd looks from not only the military officers but Alphonse as well, he cleared his through sheepishly and said,

"Sorry…"

"Anyway," Al said turning his attention back to the officers, "who is this superior officer of yours? And what makes them think we even want to talk to them? I personally have no interest in the military or anything they have to offer."

"Recently promoted, Colonel Roy Mustang," Riza answered, "You might know him as the Flame Alchemist."

"My god…" Al said suddenly slapping his forehead with a look of shock on his face, "never heard of him…" he finished in a monotone that nearly caused internal bleeding for poor Liem, who was suddenly stricken with a nasty bout of laughing.

"You should show a little more respect kid," Hughes said smirking slightly, "he could be an asset."

"Ooooh really?" Al looked at them while crossing arms, "So tell me, why is it he's even looking for us? It's not like we're offering up our 'services' to anyone."

"That's a question you'll have to ask him yourself, Alphonse." Hawkeye answered glaring.

"Don't say that…" Al hissed.

"Say what?"

"My name…"

"Then what should we call you?"

Al didn't answer that, the more he was hearing his name the more he was reminded of what went on for all of his life, which was not something he wanted to be reminded of. He also wasn't sure what to be called…he didn't have any nicknames nor did he want them. Finally seeing no way around it he just waved his hand dismissively and glared out the window, clearly sulking.

That's when the car suddenly hit the breaks hard and everyone was thrown forwards, or back in Liem and Alphonses' case. Hughes quickly looked up and demanded to know what happened and why they'd stopped, the large man, Major Armstrong answered gruffly,

"There's somebody in the middle of the road sir."

"Then drive around them."

"They're standing right in front of the car sir."

"What?" Hughes looked out the window; sure enough somebody was standing, with their hand on the hood of the car, right in front of them. Alphonse suddenly looked up and asked,

"Do you smell that?"

"Smell what?" Liem asked.

"Everybody out!" Al shot straight for the car door and nearly kicked it open; everyone quickly jumped out just as the car exploded.

"What the hell was that?" Liem gasped, he had landed unpleasantly and ungracefully on the cement and looked shocked, irritated, and bruised.

"Heh…heh…hahahahaha! Well, what do we have here?" the figure who'd blown up their car was now making his way around the burning remains of the car. He was dressed in black pants, that any passing by female would instantly swoon over, and a black long sleeve shirt with a white stripe going down the arms.

"Brother! What do you think you're doing? You could've blown me up!" Al snapped, he too had landed in a less then graceful position and was now staggering to his feet brushing the dust and dirt off his clothes.

"Little brother! Is that you? What were YOU doing in a military vehicle?"

"'Brother'? 'Little brother'?" Liem slowly got up and gazed over at the still advancing figure, "You're Edward?" He gasped and pointed. Liem was able to make out his face on and he seemed much different now then from the memories, he looked…murderous.

Edward turned and looked at Liem, his eyes narrowed and he advanced faster until he was nearly face to face with him.

"Say it again…" he said. The unforgiving darkness in his eyes made Liem feel very small…and very, very disturbed.

"I guess you don't like the sound of your own name either," Liem finally said, "I can understand that, we are brothers after all."

"What? Me, not like the sound of my name?" Ed took a small step back and had a surprisingly amused look on his face, "Are you crazy? I love it!"

Alphonses' eyes went very narrow, he could feel it, something has changed about his brother but he couldn't figure it out. He knew Edward was fully capable of doing something like this but actually having it happen on this day, to the car he just so happened to be riding in? He had to understand what was going on, and the only way of doing that was to look into his brothers' mind and soul. Al grimaced, that was no easy task, he would have to subdue Edward somehow…and that was like trying to confine a mad king cobra inside a paper bag, it just wasn't smart.

"So tell me…what is your name…little…brother?" Ed jeered, he was entertaining himself now by learning more about Liem, he was curious after all.

"Liem…" Liem took a step back, he had to do something, but what?

"Huh…" Ed crossed his arms and took a step closer, "So it was true."

Alphonse walked up behind Liem and placed a hand on his shoulder, he whispered his plan to him. Liem nodded then said,

"So…Edward…how much exactly do you know about alchemy?" he knelt down quickly and drew a transmutation circle on the ground, activating it he transmuted a long spear.

"Oh ho!" Ed just laughed, "that's pretty impressive!" he then clapped his hands and touched the ground, he transmuted a long staff and held it out in front of him, "So…Liem…just how much about alchemy do YOU know?"

"Uh…is that new?" Liem whispered to Al.

"Yeah…that's new…" Al groaned, this was NOT going to be easy…at all. Then a new idea hit him, it was risky and Liem probably wouldn't be too happy with him afterwards, though he wasn't really shooting for keeping everyone happy. "Liem…I want you to attack him, this will distract him long enough so that I can try and see into his memories."

"You're joking right?"

"No…"

"Didn't think so…" Liem took a deep breath, then lashed out at Ed with the spear. Edward brushed it aside like it was nothing, he then spun the staff he had around and brought one end down. Liem had dodged it, but only just, Edward took this time to pull the staff back and with unbelievable speed, swung it around. He caught Liem in the side that time and sent sailing.

"Ok…I'm bored now…" Edward turned and eyed the military officers with some interest, smirking he started towards them, "Mmm…"

Hawkeye whipped out her side arm and pointed it at the now advancing young man, Hughes did the same thing, Armstrong though took off his jacked and flexed, this caused Edward to make an annoyed grimace.

"Don't come any closer or we'll shoot!" Hawkeye shouted. Edward shook his head then continued to walk towards them. Mean while, Liem was lying on the cement a few feet away, Al was crouched down next to him trying to see what was broken.

"You can't fight your way out of a paper bag!" he snapped.

"Ow…shut up…" Liem tried to sit up, a sharp pain shot through his side and up into his arm, "Argh…"

"Here let me take a look at that…" Al applied some pressure into Liems' side.

"Ow hey!" Liem quickly pulled away.

"See, there, you're fine," Al said standing up, "Now come on, he's not going to…hey!"

Liem had already gotten up and started towards Edward, there was a very distinct flare in his eyes now as he picked up his spear and quickly transmuted it into a staff. He charged straight at his older brother, he swung it with as much force as he could muster. The staff was aimed right for the elder Elrics' head but, before it came within an inch, Edward reached out and caught it mid-swing, he turned his head and glared,

"Uh, uh, uh…this is a dangerous weapon…for…children!" he twisted the staff out of Liems' hands and threw it aside. He then rounded on the officers, "Now…where was I?" he took a step forward.

"I said stay back or we'll shoot!" Hawkeye shouted again, she was more then ready to pull the trigger if he tried anything, Hughes though tried a different approach.

"Listen, we just want to talk."

"Yes well," Edward grinned, "I don't." he clapped his hands, while still holding the staff he'd made, and transmuted said staff into a spear, he started running straight for them. Liem started after Ed, he had to distract him long enough for Al to do what it was he had to do and to prevent him from being shot by the military.

He managed to catch up but he was a few seconds too late, Hawkeye had fired two rounds. The first one hit its' mark, Edward skid to a halt and dropped the spear, the bullet had gone right through his right shoulder and was bleeding considerably. The second shot hadn't hit its' initial target, Liem had jumped in front of Ed, in attempt to try and stop him, but got the bullet right to the lower back, just below the rib cage.

Edward involuntarily caught him though when he fell forwards, with the sudden weight on his arms the pain from his own bullet wound magnified and caused the older Elric to grow dizzy and pass out.

"Oh my god…" Hawkeye quickly holstered her gun and ran towards the two, now unconscious, brothers, she was followed by Lt. Col. Hughes and Major Armstrong. Alphonse joined them as well, though he looked more irritated then worried,

"Well…that's not what I had in mind…but…at least now I can see what it was or is that is making my brother act this way."

"We need to take them to a hospital first." Hughes said as he took off his blue jacket and used it to tie up Liems' wound, Hawkeye was doing the same with Edward, she was not shooting to kill this time, just to make a lasting impression not to mess with the military. She didn't intend or predict ever shooting Liem, that left her feeling most unsettled and rather guilty, but she'd never, EVER let it show on her face.

"Right," Al nodded, "And how do you suggest we do that? Brother here blew up the car."

"Simple," Hughes raise his hand, "Taxi!"

Alphonse smacked his fist into his forehead muttering, "Oy."

-To Be Continued-

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MWAHAHAHAHAHA! Bet ya didn't see that comin'! Ha! Ehem…pardon me…

But yeah, me hearts Maes Hughes n.n he's so kewl…and huggable…and did I mention kewl? That and I just wanted ta mess with everyone (in one o dem moods, ya dig?)

Liem: Oh my…she IS in one of those moods!

Al: Which means one thing!

Ed: WE'RE GONNA DIE!

Me: (evil grin as devil horns sprout) MWHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Liem: OMG! You shot me! (Al: T.T)

Those aren't devil horns…they're halo supporters! That description of Eds' pants…fangirls may use their imagination (he's supposed ta look drop dead smexy in this scene (ack! I'm swooning over a, what…twenty, at least, year old Edward…)) and he's all cool and stuff. DANG! He's almost like Kimbley! The treacherous bugger! (Mentally beats Kimbley with a sour punch straw screaming 'Die darn you! Die!') n.n tee hee


	8. Chapter 7

**RealNutcase:** lol, isn't that funky!

**Demon Lord Sesshomaru:** Thank you!

**Hanjuuluver:** Hughes! Yey! –huggles Hughes- n.n. Yes, our dear Edo is psycho again…it's fun because…because…it's Ed! Whahahaha!

**Epobbp: **Ranger…yes…Risembool Ranger! That's me! Mwahaha!

**Kuropuu:** Yes…well…I sort of wasn't sure how to use him without having him kill Ed in the process if ya catch my drift. Though I guess he could have hugged him and crush his spine…though that may complicate future engagements (wink, wink…joking!).

**Agent000:** Indeed! I think it was something he ate. Okie dokie!

I think I'm in lobve…again…Genjyo Sanzo from Saiyuki…(swoon) I may only have volume two of the manga but…he's already my favorite. Yes…him and Sha Gojyo…

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Chapter Seven

--

The taxi pulled up the Central Hospital, Hughes, Hawkeye and Alphonse got out the car followed by Armstrong who was carrying the two unconscious brothers, once they were inside they were able to get some medical attention for the two. That was about two hours ago, now, Alphonse and the three military officers were standing next to Liems' bed.

"Ow…" Liem slowly sat up and looked at them, "What happened?"

"You were shot, how's that for a souvenir." Al answered with a shrug.

"Shot! Wha…oh…yeah…" Liem flopped back into his pillow and gazed at the wall in front of him, "What about Edward?"

"Oh, he'll live…" Al answered again, "I think the most he suffered was getting blood on his clothes."

"What makes you say that?" Liem muttered.

"Tsk…you saw the look he had, his mind was focused on one thing and it wasn't caring about getting shot."

"Huh…" Liem glanced over at the bed next to his, Edward was still out cold, there was something calm and unthreatening about him when he was sleeping…though after what happened it was unlikely he was either.

"It would seem that our little encounter with big brother has caught the attention of said superior officer, Roy Mustang, guess he heard he was in town." Al added, he didn't look too happy about it either. Hughes took this opportunity to chime in,

"The least you boys could do is hear him out, he is after all paying for your hospital bill."

"And here I thought they were just being nice." Al grumbled, "He'd better make it fast or make it good cause we've got business to do."

"Hey, why not do it now?" Liem asked suddenly, "I mean, he's not moving, why not look into his mind now?"

"I could do that yes…" Al nodded, "Why not, I was only going to do that in a few minutes."

Liem sighed, he understood why he was like that but honestly, Al needed to work on his people skills a little more. Al walked over and sat down on the edge of his older brothers' bed, he appeared to be deep in thought until he looked over at the others and said,

"Ok, I'm going to do this now…" he aseptically looked at Liem as if mentally telling him something, catching on quickly Liem nodded.

"He's going to look into his mind by transferring his soul into Eds' body, or something like that, so if he appears to be asleep don't touch him ok?" Liem explained to the military officers.

"He told you this?" Hawkeye asked.

"No, he did it to me…only he transferred my soul into his body, it was a very interesting experience I'll give you that." Liem snickered, "I hope he finds what he's looking for though…"

"But, what if what he's looking for isn't what he wants?" Hughes asked, his eyes were on the two older brothers.

"Well…he said he wants to know what happened so that's what he's going to look for, I'm sure he already knows it's probably going to be something really bad."

"Why is that?"

"I don't think you'd understand."

"Try us."

"Well, Edward was already pretty… 'crazy'…to begin with, so, he wants to know what could have possibly made him THAT crazy. It's hard to explain, I guess his has to do with past experiences and an unpleasant childhood…if you could call it that." Liem crossed his arms gingerly, so's not to aggravate his bandaged wound. Als' head was lowered and his breathing had become slow and even, almost like he was sleeping only he wasn't.

Al's POV (inside Eds' mind)

I can't say for sure how long I was walking around in the dark, it seemed like forever. I'd never actually seen what my brothers' mind was like, I'd never really wanted too either, I knew it was filled with as equally bad things as mine. But I had to know what Dante did to him to make him act this way, even towards me, he was openly aggressive towards me even without somebody saying my name, and, since when did he enjoy hearing his name? He wasn't as bad as me but he still didn't like hearing it, especially from Dante, no, he hated her with a passion, even though there really wasn't anything he could do about it.

_I paused when a memory appeared, that's strange; I've never seen that man before. He had short dark hair, with a hint of gray starting on the sides, he appeared to be in his late forties maybe early fifties. The man looked up and asked,_

_"Dante, are you absolutely sure you want to do this? Do you really want to go that far?"_

_Then the all too familiar voice of Dante could be heard answering,_

_"My dear doctor, don't you wish to study the capabilities of what you have created? Don't you want to see exactly what this Philosophers' Stone can do when used in different…environments?" _

_"Of course I do, though it's still imperfect, but I don't think it's right to use it in that fashion." He answered. Dante didn't sound happy when she said,_

_"I hired you for one reason and that was because you successfully created a Philosophers' Stone, also, the military has given me complete access and rights to all of your work."_

_"It's imperfect, if used in the wrong fashion it could kill somebody."_

_"If used properly, it could still kill somebody," Dante answered spitefully, "Now do it now or suffer the consequences." _

_The memory faded after that, an imperfect Philosophers' Stone? Why was Dante after that? Unless…_

_"Oh…my god…she didn't…" That's when the next memory appeared, I could see Dante this time, I must be seeing what he's seeing, she was standing alone and appeared to have a very triumphant look on her face. She said,_

_"Now, now, there's no need to fight this…Edward, you really shouldn't have come back here otherwise I probably wouldn't have found you." she was holding something, I couldn't see what it was though._

_"You know, you're the best out of all the others we've tried, none of them have ever made it to this level." _

_"Shut up and die Dante…" That was my brothers' voice, my he sure didn't sound too happy…didn't sound angry either…no he was beyond that. _

_"Such manners, well I can fix that, with this," Dante seemed to disappear for a moment, did he just close his eyes? She reappeared, "There…we'll see just how tough you really are." _

_Now everything went black, it wasn't the end of the memory I could tell; no…it was something else._

_'Crap…he's waking up' If he knew I was in his mind there was guaranteed trouble, if he tried to force me out of his mind then he could end up putting both of us in shock…or a coma…whichever happens first. I had to move quickly. _

--

"What's happening?" Hawkeye asked, it had been at least a good forty to fifty minutes since Al had started poking around in Eds' mind. Armstrong and Hughes had left, Armstrong returning to Central HQ and Hughes having to head home. Hawkeye had volunteered to stay behind and keep an eye on the brothers until Mustang arrived. Liem was watching the two brothers, Ed was apparently trying to wake up but something was stopping him, Al had a slightly pained look on his face. Just then

Al quickly jumped up and staggered back as Edward sat bolt up in his bed wide eyed and gasping,

"What the hell was that?" he looked around until he spotted Al and Liem, his eyes narrowed and he frowned, "Hmph…" he then looked at Hawkeye, his glare grew more sinister and his frown turned into a scowl, "You've got some nerve shooting me like that."

"You've got some nerve to threaten military officers, either that or half a brain."

Both Liem and Als' eyes grew very wide, Al quickly hid behind Liems' bed and peeked just above the edge saying,

"Not a good idea lady."

"Oh, so I guess your tongue is as sharp as your shooting, what are you a shrew?" Ed snapped back. Hawkeye took out her gun again; she had her finger on the trigger and was ready to shoot him again, this time she'd get him in the head.

"You're wounded, I wouldn't want to have to hurt you…again."

"Where did the other nice, not scary, officers go when I was away?" Al asked in an almost whimper.

"They left just before you came out of it," Liem answered, "Why'd they have to leave…"

Very tense sparks were flying, leaving the poor younger brothers feeling very scared, for pretty much the rest of the night, at least nobody died by the morning. In the morning though, Ed appeared to be in higher spirits, he was only making one or two threats on their lives. Also, Hawkeye had been allowed to go home and Hughes arrived to take her place, the minute though he walked through the door he had to quickly scurry over to the corner Al and Liem were sitting in. The evil aura hovering around Ed was so thick you could almost see it, he was most definitely not the same as before…oh no…he was very evil.

"Well I have good news and bad news for you boys, which would you like to hear?" He asked.

"The good news." Al said quickly.

"All right," Hughes reached into his pants pocket, "My daughter Alicia is turning four this weekend, isn't she adorable!" he said pulling out a photo and flashing it in their faces. Alphonse nearly had a cow, Liem though just nodded and smiled…more or less just playing along until finally Al snapped,

"Fine! What's the bad news!"

"It would seem that Col. Mustang is already hear."

"Exactly how is that bad news?" Liem asked.

"Because, he was supposed to wait until I reported back to him on the situation." Hughes sighed, "Oh well, he's stubborn that way."

"So…where is he?" Al grumbled, that's when someone new walked through the door, the minute he stepped into the room Eds' evilness seemed to drop to zero, he was only doing that to get on everybody's nerves and to keep them away from him.

"It's been a long time…Edward and Alphonse." The dark haired man said crossing his arms. Both Ed and Al were eyeing him as if they'd seen a ghost or something, Liem though sat up again and said,

"So, you're Col. Mustang?"

"Yes," he answered, "Who are you?"

"Liem Elric sir, I'm their younger brother." Liem half smirked pointing to the still starring brothers.

"Really?" Mustang smirked, it was a very smug smirk, "So, you're the Elric brothers…this answers many of the questions I had."

"AH HA! I knew I've heard your voice from somewhere!" Al suddenly spouted.

"He's one of the men from the council, back in the beginning." Ed continued.

"Yes well, I was only a Lieutenant Colonel back then but I was invited." Roy said, "I must say though, I am shocked to see the two of you still alive."

"Why, so you can watch us kill each other again?" Ed said coldly.

"No need to be cold Edward, I am here to offer you boys a possible window of opportunity. To find the person responsible for separating you from your family and making you suffer all those years."

Alphonse raised an eyebrow and Edward scoffed,

"Idiot…I don't care about that…I've come to terms with what's happened."

When Al heard his brother say that, something snapped, he rounded on Ed and shouted,

"You're lying! How can you forgive her? You said you hated her! You said you'd make her pay for what she's done!"

"Stop crying…I only said that so you'd stop pestering me."

It all happened so fast nobody in the room truly saw what happened, all that can be recollected was Al charging straight at Eds' bed and tackling him. Several people tried to get him off of his brother only to find that he'd already locked Eds' mind away inside his own. At least that's what Liem said happened when they all tried to wake him up, Al was taken away to a different room.

"Hmm…" Roy crossed his arms, Liem though looked up at him and asked,

"You do realize that was your fault right?"

"Was it really?"

"Jerk, yes it was, Edward was recaptured by Dante and she did something to him to make him just forget hating her. And since you brought up trying to stop her, that drove him to say he didn't care anymore which drove Al to do what he did…so yes it's your fault."

"You're pretty observant."

"Yes I am, now Ed's trapped in Als' mind and Al's probably not in the mood to let him go." Liem said crossing his arms, wincing slightly since he'd forgotten about his own wounds.

"Tell me Liem, why are you here?"

"I came here with Al to help him find Ed and stop Dante."

"Yes…about Dante, do you know where she is?"

"Why?"

"She vanished a few days ago."

"What?" Liem had a bad feeling about all this, he knew he was going to be getting into something deep but this…this is way over his head.

-To Be Continued-

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Oh wow! That came out fast! I finished a chapter before midnight, w00t! Ok like seven minutes before but that's still before! Oh yeah! Well anyway, this chapter was mainly just to give a small intro to Mustang (he's got a better part in the next few chapters and such) AND to sort of hint, if you haven't already figured it out, at what's happened to Ed. Yeah I tossed in having Al lock his mind away but hey, he needs some cooling down time no! Well anyway, the next chapter will be really cool cause we'll be delving into the minds of Ed and Al. What will we see there? (Beep) If you wish to continue, please insert a review in the bottom button thingy, have a nice day n.n.


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